14 DISCOURS III. OF THE SECOND ARTICLE And in IESVS-CHRIST his only Son, Hough that the authority of the holy Apoftles is more than fufficient to make men to believe fimply and most reasonably, the verities propofed to them in these words; Nevertheless many in this unhappy age look upon them as impoftures, and laugh at all Chriftianity as a hu mane invention or Romance; Wherefore the Honour of JESUS CHRIST, the Dignity of our Faith, and the Zeal of mens falvation oblige me to prove and establish them in their fource, and to shew to every understanding, which is not blinded willfully, that JESUS-CHRIST is the true MESSIAS, promised in the Law and Prophets. 2. If JESUS-CHRIST had not come in the manner that He came and if He had not done, that which he hath don, it would not be a Crime not to know and acknowledg him; But comming with all the Markes and Signes which the Scriptures give to the MESSIAS: having don the wonderfall works which He hath done the incredulity of men cannot be palliated with excufe, fince that these evidence JEsu S-CHRIST to be the true MESSIAS, as will appeare by the confideration of them. 2. In the first place the Prophets who were fent by God,. allo according to the beliefe of our greateft Enimys, and who worked fo many miracles for the proof of their miffion who figned with their blood the verity of their Prophefies, who have been found true and faithfull by the event of that which they foretold whofe writings could never poffibly be falfifyd, nor alter'd the leaft by chriftians, fince that they were always in the hands of the Iews: Thefe Prophets, I fay, foretell, not generally and obfcurely, but particularly and diftinctly, the Mifteries of JESUS-CHRIST, the time of his comming, the place. of his birth the Virginity of his Mother, the quality of his Perfonne the kind of life He would lead, the vertues He would practife, the miracles He would worke; his Paffion, his Death, bis Burial, and his Refurcction, with all their circumftances. The time of his Comming in the 49 Chapter of Genefis, where Gen. 49. Iacob. Says at the houre of his death The Scepter fhal not be taken away from Iudas, and a Duke out of his thigh, 'till He do come that is to be fent and He shal be the Expectation of the Gentills. Here we fee two illuftrious Prophefies Prophefies, which could not be foretold but by the Spirit of him who pierces future ages, and difpofes of Kingdoms. He foretells that the Sovereignity and the Royal Authority should enter into the Tribe of Iuda, and that it should remaine there till the comming of the MESSIAS; In the firft He forefees that which was to be effected after a thousand years; what man could fee fo far? He forefees what was to come contrary to all humane apearance : for Ruben Simeon and Levi were Iudas his elder Brothers and by the right of eldership were to be preferred. Nevertheless, the Royalty in fine enters into the Tribe of Iuda in the perfonne of David: and is there eftablished, and continues there 'till the comming of the MESSIAS, notwithstanding the murmuration of the ten other Tribes, the revolt of Ifraël, and the captivity of Babilon. Isay. 11. The Prophets Ifaiah and Hieremiah foretell that He should iffue 1. Hieout of the race of David, and JESUS-CHRIST iffued thence: which is rem. 23. fo clear that He was called commonly the fon of David: and 3. it is proved by the deduction of his Gencaoligy sn S. Matthew and S. Luke. Micheas fortells that He should be born in Betheleem: Mich. 5. He Ifai. 42. He is born there. Ifaiah, that He should be conceived and born Ijai. 35 of a Virgin He was fo. the Pfalmift, that the Kings of the 6. Eaft should bring him prefents: they did fo. Ifaiah Prophefies that Ifai. 53. He should be carried into Egipt, that He should be gentle Pfal. 21. merciful, peaceable; That He should reftore light to blinde Pfal. 14 hearing to deaf, and peach to dumb. That He should be def Ifai 11. pifed, humbled, afflicted, and put to death with the wicked for the fins Zacburi- of men. David wrote almoft from point to point his crucifixion ab. 19. his death and Paffion. He foretells, that his Body should not cor rupt in the Sepulcher, but that He should rife againe. Ifaiah that 3. And because IESUS CHRIST came not only for Iews, but alfo for Gentills, who had no other Prophefies than those of the Sibyls the Providence of God put into the mouthes of thefe Propheteffes divine Oracles Oracles, who announced the comming, workes, and Myfteries of the Meffias, as Iesus hath accomplished them: The injuries of the times have deprived us of the greater part of their writings: But S. Clement Alexandrinus, Lactantlus, S. Iuftinus Martyr, S. Auguftine, and other anbib. 6. cient Fathers, who cited them for the proof of our Religion, Strom. shew, that yet in their times thefe Prophefies were in Vogue Lactan. among the Pagans. Clem. lib. 45. 4. The Prophets announced that the Meffias would come: But S. de vera Iohn Baptift proclaimed that He is come, and shewing him Sap. S. with his finger fayd, Behold him. His teftimony cannot be reJuft.Mar. fufed by any reafonable man: for He led man for He led an innocent and iu Apol. irreprehenfible life from his infancy; He was a difintereffed man, ad Ant. who contemned honours, riches and the delights of S. Aug.l. the world. The perfection and fanctity of his life is fo eminent 10. de that they take him for the Meffias: and it was in him to be Civit.c.2 acknowledged for fuch. All the Synagogue fent to him Priests &lib.11. and Levites, for to know of him, if He were СHRIST or 6.23. no; if He had anfwered but yes, they had believed his fimple word Word giving teftimony of himself; with more reafon ought one to believe him when he teftifys for another; He fays, that he is unworthy to unty the shooftring of his shoos: he hides himself fo foon as IE sus begins to shew himself: and of fo many Difciples as he had, not any of them appears after I ES us began to preach. 5. But tho the predictions of the Prophets, nor the teftimony of the Precurfour should not authorize in any fort the Miffion of IESUS-CHRIST: the workes and miracles which He wrought shew evidently that He was fent by God. When one affirms himself to be fent extraordinarily from God, if he will that men believe him, he ought to give proofs of his Miffion, to worke miracles, which are the bulls and patents of it; if he does evident, palpable, and irreprehenfible miracles, men ought to believe that he is fent by God, and give credit to his words; for 'tis impoffible that God should work a miracle in confirmation of a ly. JESvs shews then evidently and effectually that. He is fent by God, and that He is God, fincc that He works fo many Miracles in confirmation of his Miffion, and his Doctrine; He makes feen his power in all Orders of the Vnivers: He exercifes his empire upon all that is in nature, and he works miracles upon all creatures as appears in the writings of the Evangelifts. 6. Now that thefe miracles were not impoftures but truly worked, many powerfull reafons perfwade every man that hath common fenfe. But this shal fuffice at prefent, That the Evangeliftes name often the perfons, they particularize circumftances of place and manner in which the miracles were wrought and they write thofe that were don in their time, in publick, and in the prefence of many witneffes; if they had not fayd the truth they might eafily be reproved, and they would have had thoufands that would have contradicted them, and who would have taken all credit from them, and from their Gofpells; They report that JESVs fed four thousand perfons with feven loaves: and another time, five thousand with five loaves; They fay that JESUS raised Lazarus half rotten in Bethania, very neare to Hierufalem the child of the Widow in Naim at the gate of the City, in the fight of very many; that they brought into Hieru C falem falem the infirme of the neighbouring Towns and that the fhadow of S. Peter paffing upon them, they were all cured; If thefe things were fals, when the Evangelifts pteached, and published their books, they would have had as many Witneffes against them, as there were perfons in Naim, in Hierufalem and in the neighbouring Towns, who would have fayd, we were then in the Town, we have neither feen nor heard any th ing of all this. They fay that in the paffion of JESUS CHRIST the fun was eclipfed, that darkness covered all the earth, that the earth trembled, that the fepulchers opened, that the Vail of the Temple was rent, and that this was done in the feaft of Pafche; when there were in the City more than eleven hundred thousand perfons according to the hiftory of Iofephus; thefe Perfons. came to the Feast from all parts of the world where the Iews were then difperfed, as may be feen in Philo, Iofephus, and Tacitus, and from thence they returned to their refpective homes. If these miracles had not been true, there would have been in every place, who would have depofed against the Apoftles and the Gospell which they brought with them who would have fayd to them you are great lyars: we were that year in Hierufalem, and we faw nothing of all this: they would have fent them back into their counrrey with their books. But this happen'd not for thefe miracles were fo evident, fo notorious, and confeft of all the world: that the Apoftles who preached them were received by all the world. The Gofpells which containe th em being published; not one of the Pharifees, who were enraged with fpite againft IESUS CHRIST and his Religion, ever dag red to contradi& the narration of thefe miracles in the books which they compofed; But on the contrary, all the enemies of chriftian Religion, Iews, Mahometans, and Gentills, have acknow ledged thefe miraculous works. Aug. lib. 7. As concerning the miracles of the Apoftles and primitive chri 1.de Con- ftians, which they wrought in the name of IESUS, they were fo fen.C.10. frequent and fo evident, that Pagans not being able to reproach Evang. them by any artifice, attributed them to magick, as may be feen in S. Auguftin. But to attribute them to Magick, is a malice as black |